Your Excellencies, dear colleagues,
I want to start by offering my deep appreciation to the Secretary General who brought us here today to adopt the Pact for the Future, and to the co-facilitators, Germany and Namibia. Thank you, for undertaking this important and very complicated task.
All of us who are here today recognize the urgent need to take action, to implement the many detailed, specific initiatives that are outlined in the Pact for the Future. For sustainable development, for peace and security, for addressing climate change, for the restoration of trust in global governance, a trust which has come under intense scrutiny. For our own sake, and for the sake of future generations.
We managed to come to an agreement – and it was not an easy task- , at a time of heightened mistrust, strife, polarization and conflict. Yet we reached a consensus, because we know that the stakes are extremely high, and that the global threats we are facing together as an international community are of much greater order than the individual interests of regions, countries or governments.
This is, after all, why the United Nations was created, almost 80 years ago. At the root of its foundation was the recognition that there is such a thing as a global interest, a global common good for humanity, which supersedes and transcends the individual interests of member states.
The generation that created the United Nations and adopted the UN Charter left us an invaluable legacy. One important difference between their historical moment and ours is this: they created the international system after suffering a devastating and unprecedented global catastrophe – the Second World War. We, on the other hand, have the opportunity to do something before it’s too late, before we arrive at the next true global crisis. We can still avert the devastation that could be wrought by the current global threats we are faced with.
Our Pact for the Future, as a point of global consensus, is only a first step. But it is a necessary first step. It is, after all, a political declaration to act. And political will is a necessary driver for action, at the national level and, collectively, at the global level.
Greece, as an incoming member of the Security Council for the next two years, was an active participant in this difficult negotiation. We believe we got to a fairly good outcome and I note with satisfaction the inclusion of paragraphs of particular concern to us, such as maritime security and the protection of culture as an integral component for sustainable development.
Crucially, today we are renewing our trust in the multilateral system and we reaffirm our commitment to it. At this point in time, it was necessary to have this reaffirmation, to go “back to the basics” of the UN Charter, such as the peaceful settlement of disputes with respect to international law. We can now move forward and solve together the core challenges of our era. They are truly global challenges and, of course, they require global solutions. With the Pact for the Future, we at least have a roadmap to lead us there. Nothing could be more vital.
Thank you very much.
